New Visa Requirements for the USA

Up until the 12th January 2009, certain passport holding travellers(by air or sea) were required to apply in advance for B1 Visitor or B2 tousrits visas. Other countries were part of the Visa Waiver programme, which meant that visas were not required prior to travelling, but a Visa Waiver form was completed on board the aircraft.

A list of the 35 Visa Waiver countries is below:

• Andorra Australia Austria Belgium Brunei Denmark Finland France Germany Iceland Ireland Italy Japan Liechtenstein Luxembourg Monaco Netherlands Norway Portugal San Marino Singapore Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland New Zealand United Kingdom Czech Republic
• Estonia Latvia Lithuania Hungary Republic of Korea Slovak Republic Malta
• From the 12th January 2009, these rules have changed. After this date it is mandatory for all Visa Waiver travelers to apply for a Travel Authorization and pre-register the trip (visit or transit under the Visa Waiver Program) to the United States
• There are additional passport and travel requirements that must be fulfilled in order to visit the United States under the Visa Waiver Program

This new system is called ESTA.

ESTA stands for Electronic System for Travel Authorization. And is processed on line and operated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). visitors must apply for a Travel Authorization in advance in addition to having a machine readable passport (e-passport).

The purpose of ESTA is to let DHS pre-screen all Visa Waiver Travelers before they leave their respective countries. U.S. bound travelers are recommended to apply for a Travel Authorization at least 72 hours prior to departure. Although it can still be applied for after this time. The Travel Authorization is not a visa. . All ESTA does is to pre-screen a Visa Waiver Traveler and allow him or her to travel to the United States and apply for admission. An approved Travel Authorization does not guarantee entry to the United States, but it is a prerequisite to travel to the United States by air or sea carrier. If you are not approved, you must apply for a visitor visa.

persons from non-visa waiver countries should not attempt to apply for a Travel Authorization. They must go through the proper visa application channels

There are companies that offer to apply for the visa for you, for a price, but it is simple:
Once you have finalised your travel plans go to the following link:

https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/esta.html

Here you will be given instructions. Just follow these and unless there is something wrong with you or your travel documents your visa will be approved instantly. Once you have filled in the online forms you will be given a serial number…keep this handy. Once submitted, the approval will come back within a couple of minutes. Although you don’t have to show this paperwork, it is advisable to print out the forms along with the approval…just for safety.

If you do not have the ESTA approval, your carrier may not let you board the flight. It would be advisavbe to apply for the Esta visa before paying for your air/sea ticket in case of problems with your approval. If your application is denied you must apply for a B1 Visitor visa or B2 tourist visa, and these can take weeks or months to process.

The Travel Authorization is valid for two years and can easily be update for future visits.

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